Featured Posts
Time to accept that wind farm costs are not falling
There has been a consistent narrative that the cost of building new wind farms is falling, with falling subsidy [...]
Windfall tax harms oil and gas production and must be cut
In May last year, the UK Government introduced a windfall tax on the profits of oil and gas companies [...]
Why Norway’s views on energy security should ring alarm bells across Europe
Norway's energy security would appear to be a done deal, yet the past couple of years have been very [...]
Addressing the high real cost of renewable generation
Over the past few months we have been inundated with claims from interested parties that more renewables are the [...]
Recent Posts
Relying on aging nuclear reactors poses risks to energy security
Last week came the welcome news that EDF will extend the lives of its Heysham 1 and Hartlepool nuclear reactors by a further two years to March 2026. The company had hinted at a possible extension back in September [...]
A late cold snap delivers an EMN and the tightest day of the winter so far
Over the past few days forecasters have been warning of a cold snap, with particularly cold weather hitting the north of the UK, which began on Tuesday – as I began writing this post at lunchtime on Tuesday 7 [...]
Record price set for the T-4 capacity auction reflects increasingly tight market
Last week the T-4 capacity auction for delivery in 2026-27 closed at a record price for the long-term auction of £63 /kW /year, an double the previous high in the T-4 auction, and higher than the price in the [...]
T-1 capacity market auction clears with a high price and some interesting questions
Last week saw the T-1 capacity market auction clear at its second highest level ever of £60 /kW/year, down from £75 /kW/year last year when the auction cleared at its maximum price since the procurement target was higher than [...]
Centrica’s record profits create outrage, much of it unfair
Today Centrica announced record profits of £3.3 billion (actually the company booked a statutory loss after revaluing its hedging book, but this is an accounting quirk due – more of which later). The outrage has been predictable with the [...]
No end in sight to the troubled smart meter rollout
When the UK Government first announced its Smart Meter Implementation Plan in 2013, it hoped to see 30 million smart meters installed by 2020. In fact, this target was only reached in Q3 2022. Having extended the rollout to [...]
The Octopus takeover of Bulb is the subject of a legal challenge
The Octopus takeover of Bulb which was announced in November is now subject to a legal challenge from a group of the company’s rivals who argue that it received preferential treatment from the Government. Bulb collapsed in November 2021 [...]
Norway acts to restrict electricity exports and protect security of supply
Last year I warned repeatedly that Norway can not be expected to sit passively by while other countries drain its reservoirs and that it may well take steps to restrict exports. I drew attention to comments by Norwegian Prime [...]
The DFS was activated for the first time but was it really needed?
This week National Grid ESO has activated its Demand Flexibility Service (“DFS”) for the first time. The scheme was used for 1 hour on Monday 23 January and 1.5 hours the following day. The coal reserves were also placed [...]
Expensive energy subsidies to be scaled back
Back in October, the Government put in place energy subsidies for households and businesses, designed to protect them from the impact of high energy prices. For households, the intention was to reduce the number of people that would be [...]
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